Jaguar speeds up testing

In the latest Formula One testing in Europe, the Australian completed 520km, more than any other driver at Spain's Jerez circuit, and he was not far off the pace.

With the start of the world championship now just three weeks away at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Webber and the R5-model Jaguar did 118 laps Thursday night (Australian time) - almost the distance of two GPs.

He was quicker than one of the new Williams-BMW cars driven by Ralf Schumacher and a Ferrari driven by Rubens Barrichello, as well as his new Jaguar teammate, Austrian rookie Christian Klien.

French team Renault and British American Racing continued to be the pacesetters, with Renault's official test driver, Franck Montagny, at the top of the timesheet.

McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen and Williams' Juan Pablo Montoya, two of the main challengers to six-time world champion Michael Schumacher's throne, were the only other drivers ahead of Webber, who was within 0.7 seconds of Montagny's benchmark.

Despite attempts by Jaguar's communications unit to play down concerns, there have been fears about the Jaguar since team chief Tony Purnell alluded to a possible fundamental flaw in the R5 on the eve of its launch a month ago.

German Nick Heidfeld was the slowest of the 14 drivers at Jerez, having this season joined Jordan, which uses the same Ford Cosworth engine as Webber's Jaguar.

Jordan still has not confirmed the final driver in the field.

Italian Giorgio Pantano has been favoured to fill the seat, but Dutch veteran Jos Verstappen - whose management has twice broken off talks with Jordan - has now come back into calculations.

Verstappen reportedly has the most lucrative personal sponsorship, something struggling Jordan needs to stay in the competition.

Website F1Racing.net has reported that Verstappen's main sponsor, Dutch computer company Trust, has put a new proposal on the table to team boss Eddie Jordan.

One of the sticking points is believed to be how much Verstappen would be paid for the season.